Thousands of nurses missing in the system

Young people are discouraged from working in health sector by low salaries as well as unsuitable working conditions. According to the Slovak Chamber of Nurses and Midwives, this points to the fact that in recent years the interest of young people in the nursing profession has been falling. Nurses say that in the long run there is a shortfall of about 12,000 nurses in the system. The Health Ministry claims that it is doing its utmost to improve the working conditions of nurses in Slovakia. "As far as their remuneration is concerned, nurses are already legally determined to get higher salaries at regular intervals," said a ministry's spokeswoman Zuzana Eliášová. Hospitals can also request €70 million from the capital spending this year for the modernization and reconstruction of their facilities.